Who's Writing This?

Who is really controlling the pen?Editor Daniel Halpern was profoundly curious about the creative processso he asked fifty-five world-renowned writers to briefly muse on "the fictional persona behind the scenes," the alter(ed) ego who takes over when there is true literary work to be done. And the writers responded in a myriad of ways. Margaret Atwood, Frank Conroy, William Gass, Czeslaw Milosz, Susan Sontag, James Michener, Joyce Carol Oates, and others offered snap-shot reflections on the process, some thoughtful and deep, others downright silly. (Edward Gorey, for one, anagrammed his name to introduce all his secret selves, including the inimitable "Ogdred Weary.") Many provided self-portraits, included within.Joyous and wondrous, revealing and surprising, remarkable and ridiculous, Who's Writing This? is an unmitigated delightan eloquent celebration of self-knowledge and artistic expression that uniquely bares the writer's soul.

Who is really controlling the pen?

Editor Daniel Halpern was profoundly curious about the creative process?so he asked fifty-five world-renowned writers to briefly muse on "the fictional persona behind the scenes," the alter(ed) ego who takes over when there is true literary work to be done. And the writers responded in a myriad of ways. Margaret Atwood, Frank Conroy, William Gass, Czeslaw Milosz, Susan Sontag, James Michener, Joyce Carol Oates, and others offered snap-shot reflections on the process, some thoughtful and deep, others downright silly. (Edward Gorey, for one, anagrammed his name to introduce all his secret selves, including the inimitable "Ogdred Weary.") Many provided self-portraits, included within.

Joyous and wondrous, revealing and surprising, remarkable and ridiculous, Who's Writing This? is an unmitigated delight?an eloquent celebration of self-knowledge and artistic expression that uniquely bares the writer's soul.

Autorentext

Daniel Halpern is the author of eight collections of poetry and editor of numerous anthologies, most recently The Art of the Story. He has received numerous grants and awards, including fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts.